housemarque – PlayStation.Bloghttp://blog.us.playstation.com
Official PlayStation Blog for news and video updates on PS4, PS3, PSN, PS Vita, PSPSat, 10 Dec 2016 00:26:18 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.5.3http://blog.us.playstation.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/cropped-PS-Bug-32x32.jpghousemarque – PlayStation.Bloghttp://blog.us.playstation.com
3232Introducing Nex Machina on PS4, From Housemarque and Eugene Jarvishttp://blog.us.playstation.com/2016/12/03/introducing-nex-machina-on-ps4-from-housemarque-and-eugene-jarvis/
http://blog.us.playstation.com/2016/12/03/introducing-nex-machina-on-ps4-from-housemarque-and-eugene-jarvis/#commentsSat, 03 Dec 2016 19:36:00 +0000http://blog.us.playstation.com/?p=186601Hey, Mikael from Housemarque here. A few months after the release of Resogun we bumped into Eugene Jarvis at DICE Summit 2014, where he received a Pioneer award for his contribution to the gaming industry. Eugene, creator of arcade cult classics such as Defender, Robotron, and Smash TV, has always been one of our major sources of inspiration for the kind of games we are famous for.

You can see Eugene’s invisible hand in the gameplay of Dead Nation, Alienation, and — of course — Resogun, which is Defender’s “spiritual successor.” What makes both of our philosophies resonate is that we believe games should be fun, fast, and brutal.

We stayed in touch. He played Resogun. And when we asked if he wanted to do something together, he jumped on board without hesitation.

We are now proud to show you the result of that collaboration. What was called for a long time “the Jarvis Project” we can now reveal as Nex Machina (Which, roughly translated, means Death Machine) — the most explosive top-down action shooter Housemarque has ever created.

Taking hints from both Robotron and Smash TV, Nex Machina focuses on pure arcade action, voxel destruction, and competition. But before delving into more of that, I want to talk about the game’s setting.

In a world where humans have become more and more addicted to technology, machines have evolved from simple helpers to replacements for unwanted jobs — conscious entities with their own feelings. Robots surpassed mankind’s abilities, becoming the superior being, and started to refuse to serve us.

After the singularity, the rise of the machines was inevitable — and unstoppable. But nobody even noticed. Mankind’s best and brightest were too busy updating their status on social media. When all seems lost, out of the blue a mysterious hero appears: you. Who sent you? Will you save humanity from itself once again? And last but not least, are your skills sharp enough to confront an army of fiendish robots out for blood?

We’ve been thinking long and hard about how to bring back a “true arcade experience” in a world where arcade halls are almost extinct. Nex Machina is our shot at cracking that problem, and over the next few months we’ll have more information on what you can expect on day one. For now, rest assured that the game will provide the classic Housemarque arcade experience and a kickass competitive framework, which we will expand over time to make it the obvious choice for players looking for a challenge.

Hello Earthlings, Tommaso from Housemarque here. The time to stand up for your planet has finally come! Alienation was announced at GamesCom in 2014, and since then we and Sony XDev have been working hard to make this the best game we ever released together. Alienation is not only a testament to the raw power of PS4, but also an important milestone for the arcade games of the future.

Fans of Dead Nation will find the same ruthless gunfights and the overwhelming tide of enemies they loved to hate in our zombie title — with a boost: there’s no place to hide or escape; only skill and planning can get you out of the carnage in one piece! At the same time, those who appreciate Resogun will be mesmerized by the same familiar brand of total destruction and kinetic neon action our 2013 title is famous for.

And then there’s all the new stuff, propelling Housemarque to new heights and players into a vicious loop of “one more game and then we’ll stop…”

Alienation features three customizable classes, four-player drop-in/drop-out online multiplayer (But you can play solo!), a bunch of game-changing active and passive abilities, loot of various rarity, XP and character leveling, an Invasion mode where you hunt other players down or defend from invaders, configurable weapons and gear, and much more.

Like what, you ask?

We never really mentioned it before, but did you know that Alienation is geared for replayability, offering randomized enemy spawns including stronger alien “bosses,” challenges sprinkled all over the levels, post-campaign procedurally generated levels, alien hideouts to explore, and different “World States” (our own version of New Game+) unlocking new things to do? All this makes the game fresh each time you pick it up, because you can’t just learn enemy patterns, events, and maps by heart; on the contrary, you’ll have to figure out how to face different configurations of obstacles with every playthrough.

It doesn’t end there either, as in typical Housemarque fashion, you’ll compete against others for country XP, Invasion ranking, and best completion times. Expect great things in the months to come, as we plan to support the game steadily. And yes, we heard you loud and clear: local co-op is our number one priority based on popular demand.

Go to the PlayStation Store today and show the Xenos they’ve come to the wrong planet!

Launch Party is our annual celebration of fine digital games (you may remember it by its former name, Spring Fever). Pre-order any (or all) of these games to save 10%. Enjoy!

]]>http://blog.us.playstation.com/2016/04/26/defend-earth-in-alienation-out-today-on-ps4/feed/33http://blog.us.playstation.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/alienation.jpg4.34Community Manager, Housemarque330New Alienation Details: Upgrade and Loot Systems Revealedhttp://blog.us.playstation.com/2016/04/13/new-alienation-details-upgrade-and-loot-systems-revealed/
http://blog.us.playstation.com/2016/04/13/new-alienation-details-upgrade-and-loot-systems-revealed/#commentsWed, 13 Apr 2016 15:01:10 +0000http://blog.us.playstation.com/?p=172669Hi there, Tommaso from Housemarque speaking. It’s about time we shed some light on a few aspects of Alienation that have been shrouded in mystery up to now. Today’s the day we take a look at what we call Alienation’s metagame!

Two things that set our latest effort apart from the previous games we made are the loot system and the way weapons work. For those of you familiar with Dead Nation, this is quite a departure. In our zombie shooter, players could buy and upgrade a specific set of weapons between stages. In Alienation, weapons and loot are either found in boxes or dropped by enemies after they’ve been killed.This means that when you proceed with missions, you’ll have the chance to obtain rarer weapons or upgrade your weapons’ stats to match your playstyle.

I’ll give you some numbers (we all like numbers, right?): The game features four different types of Alien Cores, each upgradable up to five times and activating a different effect when set in one of the weapon slots. For example, Red Cores augment damage, while Yellow Cores modify the clip size of the weapon. Carefully planning where to put the Cores you collect during missions is a vital part of progressing in Alienation, as specific combinations can even add additional bonuses.

On top of that, loot includes metals of different rarities from “Stock” to “Legendary.” Collecting these metals allow you to “reroll” some stats of the weapon you use them on, improving your chances for the next shooting session.

Last but not least, some weapons enjoy special perks, activated when Cores are mounted in a specific pattern. For example, these perks can add the chance of a lightning chain between enemies when bullets hit them and certain conditions are met.

The idea behind all this is to get players to invest in their weapons of choice and carefully plan their arsenal before jumping into the fight — we feel that the system adds a lot of replayability and believe you will love it. Head to PlayStation Store today so you don’t miss out on the exclusive pre-order bonus!

]]>http://blog.us.playstation.com/2016/04/13/new-alienation-details-upgrade-and-loot-systems-revealed/feed/21http://blog.us.playstation.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/16971728658_0bcc618864_z.jpg3.5Community Manager, Housemarque210Happy Holidays from PlayStation.Blog and Friendshttp://blog.us.playstation.com/2015/12/22/happy-holidays-from-playstation-blog-and-friends/
http://blog.us.playstation.com/2015/12/22/happy-holidays-from-playstation-blog-and-friends/#commentsTue, 22 Dec 2015 16:00:31 +0000http://blog.us.playstation.com/?p=167381Ah, December. A time to celebrate a number of different holidays for a number of different reasons. The PlayStation.Blog team is taking some time off to visit, gain a few pounds, and hopefully catch up on some of that gaming backlog we’ve accrued over the course of 2015.

Before we sign off for the year, we wanted to celebrate the creators who make not only PlayStation.Blog, but this industry in its entirety possible. It’s these studios who create the worlds we yearn to escape to, who write the stories upon whose every word we hang. It’s thanks to them that we can do what we love to do.

We invited a few folks to stop by and pass along along any holiday greetings they might have for you, our dear readers, and they responded in kind! Let’s enjoy these festive holiday cards, take a moment to appreciate the projects these creators put their hearts and souls into, and look forward to another incredible year.

After invading E3 earlier this year, Xenos have now descended upon Paris Games Week. So many exciting announcements have been made that I think I might even have died and gone to heaven already!

Playing Alienation live on stage at the PlayStation press conference was initially a somewhat terrifying prospect. The game was so cool to play on that huge screen that after just a few seconds of play I never wanted it to end!

Our goal for Alienation is simply to create the definitive top-down shooter with awesome visual effects and layers of gameplay that will keep you coming back for more.

The game is designed to encourage players to work together, combining their skills and firepower to avoid getting caught in a situation as shown in the image below.

In Alienation, up to four players can join forces online, each assuming the role of a Bio-Specialist, Exo-Skeleton or Saboteur. There are tons of things to shoot and loot as you blast Xenos in chaotic firefights in order to complete a variety of interesting mission objectives and campaign goals, designed with collaboration in mind.

If you watch the trailer very carefully you might just spot a secret cypher that we’ve not been able to decode ourselves and would love to hear about on Twitter at #alienationps4.

Another highlight of the week for me was of course the announcement of yet another new Housemarque game called MatterFall that I have seen brought to life from sketches made by our artists made just a few months back.

Last but not least, the positive feedback and recognition that our friends at PlayStation extended to Housemarque during the presentation is hugely appreciated.

It really is an amazing coincidence that the 20th anniversary of both PlayStation and Housemarque are in the same year and it is a huge privilege for me to work with such amazingly talented people, both at Housemarque and PlayStation.

After the premiere at the Paris Games Week Press Conference, I’m pleased to announce MatterFall for PS4, the next game from our favorite arcade action masters, Housemarque.

MatterFall follows an unexpected hero fighting for survival on a ravished sci-fi world infected by a mysterious and deadly alien material known only as “Smart Matter.”

Using agility and powerful weaponry you must explore this new world and utilize your own control over the Smart Matter to uncover the mystery of this new threat and save the day before it threatens the very existence of the human race.

Expect over-the-top action through a vivid sci-fi world and all the addictive, lightning-fast arcade gameplay that you would expect from our friends at Housemarque, the veteran team behind PlayStation classics Resogun, Dead Nation, and Super Stardust.

Both myself and the team at Housemarque look forward to sharing more news on MatterFall in the future.

]]>http://blog.us.playstation.com/2015/10/27/matterfall-on-ps4-is-the-latest-from-arcade-experts-at-housemarque/feed/18http://blog.us.playstation.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/22492964246_d255e58786_z.jpg4.22Producer, XDEV180The Latest on Alienationhttp://blog.us.playstation.com/2015/04/16/the-latest-on-alienation/
http://blog.us.playstation.com/2015/04/16/the-latest-on-alienation/#commentsThu, 16 Apr 2015 13:30:13 +0000http://blog.us.playstation.com/?p=153262After a long hiatus from the public eye the latest Housemarque title, “Alienation,” is once again ready to see the light of day. Since the reveal at Gamescom 2014 very little information has been leaked about the project and all conspiracies have been squashed. But now we are happy to release the latest batch of samples, straight from the lab, including some new screenshots.

One of the main draw to Alienation from a developer’s perspective is the challenge of creating an excellent multiplayer dynamic. Since the game features three main character classes, plenty of loot, and a ton of weapon customizations, the number of different team setups is astronomical. The first reaction to seeing the gameplay footage might feel a bit like confetti shot from a minigun (we like explosions), but the game actually relies heavily on tactical teamwork amidst of all the chaos.

Our Allied Forces have come across violent specimens ranging from human-like foot soldiers to extraterrestrial flesh mountains, and while they are spreading across all corners of the earth, their focus is clearly to gather at strategic military locations away from populated areas. We’ve met them in all weather conditions and even in the darkest winter nights the hostiles do not relent for a second. The only way to defeat the enemy is with uncanny tactics combined with superior firepower.

Customizing your character layouts will give you and your team a distinct advantage over the beasts from beyond. Many soldiers have returned from the field in a body bag after heading out with too much confidence. The run-and-gun strategy will get you a few victories, but it will not win the war. Coordination and building trust with your teammates will ultimately be the difference between life and death. This trial will not be an easy one, but let’s make sure that the slimebags know that they have come to the wrong planet.

Tune in to the different comms channels in the near future for more info on the invaders. The frequency of contact with the hostiles is increasing at an alarming rate and soon we will need to reach out for brothers in arms and strike back on a global scale. In the end, only one species can be on the top of the food chain and I’m damn sure I’ll be having some Alien BBQ for dinner.

]]>http://blog.us.playstation.com/2015/04/16/the-latest-on-alienation/feed/38http://blog.us.playstation.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/alienation-lead.jpg3.33Housemarque380Super Stardust Ultra Launching on PS4 February 10thhttp://blog.us.playstation.com/2015/02/06/super-stardust-ultra-launching-on-ps4-february-10th/
http://blog.us.playstation.com/2015/02/06/super-stardust-ultra-launching-on-ps4-february-10th/#commentsFri, 06 Feb 2015 15:21:54 +0000http://blog.us.playstation.com/?p=149609Hello again, everyone. Following up on my post announcing that Super Stardust Ultra was coming to PS4 (which you can read here), it gives me great pleasure to let you all know that it will be available to download next week on February 10th. I can also confirm that Super Stardust Ultra supports 3D at full 60 frames per second! We think this is something that you’ll want to show to friends and family, it really does add an extra dimension to an already unique and great looking game.

Super Stardust Ultra is packed with incredible depth and variety, from five newly designed planets and other visual enhancements, to nine different single-player game modes. Some of which are brand new, only on PS4.

One of these modes is Blockade. As if blasting through hazardous meteor storms or fighting off enemy spacecraft wasn’t difficult enough, you now have to avoid an endless trail of deadly mines that are continually dropped from the back of your Star fighter. The twist however is that everything else on the planet is also destroyed if it makes contact with the mines, so they can be used to your advantage and timing your bombs or boost is critical to staying alive.

If you think you have the skills, then check out Interactive Streaming which not only allows you to broadcast your gameplay but also opens up your world, allowing your viewers to decide what happens next. The vote can range from a full onslaught of chaos, to a much needed helpful care package….you have been warned.

There’s always plenty to achieve in Super Stardust Ultra, whether you are hunting Trophies in pursuit of the Platinum, or blasting your way to the top of the global leader boards. Competing against friends has never been easier, whether sending direct challenges or playing 2-4 player local split-screen battles — even teaming up in co-op mode.

All this will be available on PlayStation Store for $12.99; PS Plus subscribers will receive an additional 20% discount for a period of 1 week after launch, so make sure to pick up Super Stardust Ultra next week!

As some of you may have seen in our last update, we’ve been busy working on the final expansion pack for Resogun, and are pleased to announce that Resogun: Defenders will be with you in early 2015. The Defenders DLC will be $4.99, and is also included in the Season Pass if you’ve already pre-purchased the content.

We’re really excited about this expansion and can’t wait to share some more details with you over the next few weeks. What we can share right now is that the expansion will feature 2 all-new game modes — Protector and Commando — new ships, and all new planets featuring some of our most detailed artwork to date.

We’ll also be releasing a major content patch for all players alongside the expansion pack. This patch, code named “Challengers” will update the game with new challenges and feats stretching across all existing game modes and will let you earn challenge points to increase your rank as a Resogun pilot. The patch is a free update for all Resogun PS4 owners.

What’s more is that we’re very pleased to announce that both the content patch and expansion will be available to play this weekend exclusively at PlayStation Experience in Vegas!

We’ll be back here in the coming weeks with lots more information regarding the patch and expansion, so stay tuned.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with the Super Stardust series, the critically acclaimed Super Stardust HD by talented developer Housemarque was originally released on PS3 in 2007, followed up on PSP and most recently on PS Vita as Super Stardust Delta in 2012.

This timeless shoot ’em up has you pilot a start fighter in the depths of space, defending planets against the onslaught of enemy attacks in the midst of a deadly meteor storm. Your mission is simple: use split second timing and pure arcade skill to make every shot count and destroy everything in your path.

Super Stardust Ultra, has an array of new planets, glorious visual enhancements, and includes no less than nine different game modes, including new modes and established favorites from the series and its various add-ons.

With the PS4 socially connected features, you can now show the world your skills in the new Interactive Streaming game mode, letting your viewers vote periodically to change up your gameplay as they watch.

Because Super Stardust has always been about achieving high scores, we have added the feature that allows you to directly send and receive challenges from your online friends; or you can simply compare your scores across the global leaderboards.

If you don’t fancy flying solo, you can also compete against friends in 2-4 player split-screen battles or team up in co-op mode.

Super Stardust Ultra has been developed by D3T and XDEV and this latest edition in the Super Stardust series brings the spirit of Stardust to PS4 with new features, new gameplay, incredible depth and variety, and the best graphics possible, making it the most definitive and best version of Stardust ever!

Keep checking back for more Super Stardust Ultra news, as we’ll have updates and a release date for you all very soon.